


Umbra

by Lazarusgreeneyes



Category: DCU - Comicverse, Red Robin (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Dark, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-29
Updated: 2014-11-30
Packaged: 2018-02-27 10:45:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2689958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lazarusgreeneyes/pseuds/Lazarusgreeneyes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Staying in a world caught in shadows hadn't exactly been Jason's plan, but with his presence, everything changes. There needs to be a version of him in his original world, and Tim is going to meet him, with all the consequences that come with it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Run, Baby, Run

**Author's Note:**

> Just the prologue.

He was running, one moment he had been fighting with the Replacement and the other he took off in the direction of the docks. Damn him for not being able to control his own muscles, but at least he could still use his senses and he heard Red Robin shout at him for leaving so suddenly, could feel him following him to wherever he was going because hey, he was still a criminal in his eyes even if he had broken the laws himself - like, helping him escape from prison. 

What surprised Jason was that he wasn't getting angry, normally he would get pissed when he thought about it, even if it was just the beginning on a down going spiral of his recurring negativity. But now he didn't, no anger, he didn't even feel confusion, which was just the weirdest thing ever since why was he running towards the docks - it wasn't just the direction of the docks, Jason could easily see that he was actually go there, he could _feel_ it - without doing it himself, or at least, not that he knew he was doing himself because he had no fucking control. 

Red Robin was still behind him, but he could practically feel the exhausting slipping through the boy's pores, they had almost ran across the whole city while he kept losing his weapons - just a gun here and there, nothing special -, and probable on purpose as well. Lucky him, the younger confiscated all of them so maybe he could take them back on a trip to Wayne Manor - courtesy to Alfred, probable, no one could resist the butler and Jason wasn't an exception - if he ever got there again because now he was getting filled with a feeling of dread, the feeling of no return, and he _liked_ it. 

Jason knew he probable should feel exhausted as well, but he didn't, more like feel better and while this whole situation was just weird, he didn't really care anymore. If there was any possible way to resist whatever was going on, he couldn't find himself to try and find it. He felt... content for the first time in a long time, and he almost desperately wanted to hold on to that feeling. 

When he finally arrived at the dock, his Replacement was still behind him, breathing heavily as they ran. So when he stopped, Drake - _Tim_ \- moved closer to him, looking at him almost worried or maybe he was imagining that because he hadn't seen that expression on the Pretender's face before, not directed at him at least.

"Red Hood, what's going on?" 

He didn't say anything in return, he couldn't if he wanted to. Instead, he hold his back turned to the vigilante and took a couple of steps forward, blue eyes flickering behind his helmet to search for _something_.  

"Hood, wh-"

The teen interrupted himself when one of the shadows of the dock began to move closer to them. The temperature lowered instantly and he felt Red Robin freeze behind him, getting ready for an attack. But Jason stayed where he was, he even moved closer to the shadow and he heard a noise of protest behind him but that only encouraged him to move closer, the chilly feeling he'd felt in his bones before only becoming worst as he got closer to the darkness, giving him the feeling of being filled with ice. 

Jason's lips parted and he found himself murmuring a language he'd never heard before, the tone in his voice sounding darker than he'd ever heard before and he when he lifted his hand up to touch the darkness, Red Robin moved to stop him.

He quickly moved out of his reach and turned 45 degrees, eyes narrowing at the younger as he lashed out, fist almost striking the teen in the solar plex but he dodged the attack, moving to return an attack on his own but it was already too late. It had been a move to distract him, to get him to stay farther away as he touched the growing shadow which bursted, making Jason see stars and knocking Red Robin off his feet and into a concrete wall with a sickening crack. 

The last thing he saw was Drake laying on the floor next to the wall and for the first time he found himself able to control his body again but before he could do anything, everything went black as the shadow swallowed him. 


	2. Forgetful

After having welcomed the darkness, the state of unconsciousness that made the feeling of his surely broken ribs go away, Tim wasn't sure what had happened. One moment he'd been following Jason after he'd so suddenly rushed away from their fight - you could almost call it a sparing session but it wasn't really that -, and when the Red Hood had stopped, he knew there was something awfully wrong, the moving shadow was an extra giveaway for that.

So when he tried to stop the man, he didn't succeed, he had seen Jason trying to distract him, to get him away from him for long enough to touch that weird substance - because Tim refused to believe it was a shadow, shadows didn't move like _that_ \- and unfortunately Tim wasn't fast enough to get to him again before he touched it and when he had, it seemed to have burst and he wasn't fast enough to try and get away from the blast that knocked him against the hard wall. 

The sound of broken bones wasn't one he was used to, one he wanted to get used to but this time the sound had been just sickening and Tim was sure that one of his ribs had punctured his lungs and the change of surviving this had descended way too fast for his liking. 

It didn't take too long for Tim to black out for the pain in his chest which was the opposite of a good thing because he was going to bleed out or choke on his own blood and no one beside Jason even knew he was here and he couldn't call anyone for help. 

Tim wasn't sure how he would survive if he did but he didn't feel like he was dead, or like he was dying and it confused him.

He could feel that he was lifted up and he felt his own lips part as he groaned. He probable should try to escape, to defend himself but he didn't know who was carrying him away, maybe it was Jason who had come back to his senses - but that didn't seem likely - or maybe it was someone from his family, someone who had noticed he was missing and had found him or a civilian but that didn't seem likely either so he last thing he would think about was that someone with bad intention had grabbed hold of Red Robin. 

This wasn't ending well, was what Tim thought but eventually he was placed on something soft and familiar and he felt a hand move his cowl away, touching his face all over. A thumbs striking over his closed eyelids, the back of a hand brushing over his jaw and cheeks, a palm moving over his forehead, fingers slowly carting through his black hair and a light press against his lips and it made Tim want to shy away but at the same time it made him feel light, in a good way, like he was floating but that was a ridiculous thought and he was probable hallucinating or dreaming all of it up. 

His chest still hurt but then the hand moved over his ribs and he gasped at the cold feeling as the pain began to ebb away. 

After that the light feeling spread from his head to his chest and Tim felt somehow content with the coldness that it have him, only hearing a soft whisper that sounded like the Jason's voice but when he used that tone when saying that weird language before everything went dark again. 

Waking up was a bitch, Tim felt like he was freezing even with the warm comforter in which he was cocooned. The realizing that he was laying his is own bed made him sit up in an instant, eye flying open and almost hissing at the bright light that fell through a window. He had to close his eyes for a moment and blinked to try and adjust to the painful light, and while he got used to it, his sensitive eyes still felt painful as he scanned everything. 

He wasn't in his Red Robin costume anymore and instead in his sleeping wear, plus socks, which was somehow a weird thing. He was in his bed in his apartment, the window was open and the sun was still hurting his eyes and he had the urge to hide in the shadows but he dismissed it and quickly stepped out of bed, still ice cold but he had to close the window which was open and let the cold air stream in his room. 

How he got here, Tim wasn't sure, the person who had carried him - if that hadn't been a dream - had to know where he lived so he hoped it had been Dick or Bruce but they were no where in sight and he didn't think it was one of them. 

Before his thoughts could get further in the process of figuring out what all had happened, the door of his room opened and he startled. There was no way he could defend himself with any weapons because they weren't there and that made him feel just slightly panicked, but furthermore he stayed calm, outwardly seemingly not being tense but he was, ready to defend himself and remove the person from his house.

Said person was Jason and he couldn't help but sigh audible. 

"Jason, what happened?"

He just got stared at him return, a confused frown forming on Jason's face like he didn't recognize him. 

"Ja-" Tim said, but was interrupted before he could even say his whole name.

"Just be silent, I've taken too much from you and you should rest." 

Jason's voice sounded urgent, and it only confused Tim more, what had he taken from him? He unconsciously checked all the muscles in his body but didn't feel anything different than before, well, his chest and head still felt light but further more? Nothing. 

He opened his mouth to speak again but Jason shook his head and Tim closed his mouth without uttering a word, instead frowning at him in return and moving back to his bed, sitting down there and holding his eyes on the older of the two's form, not really trusting what was going on. And only than it hit him that his chest didn't hurt anymore, but how was that possible, had he just passed out and never broken his ribs? 

His answer came in the form of Jason moving to the window and squinting at the sun before quickly closing it. "You were hurt, I brought you to this place, you seemed to recognize it." Well, that wasn't _exactly_ an answer but it was something, because Jason wasn't supposed to know where he lived and how in the world could he recognize this place when he was _unconscious_?

When Tim tried to say his name again, he was interrupted for the third time and it made him sigh in frustration.

"How do you know my name?

That made Tim's eyes widen and he stiffened, quickly glancing around him for possible things he could use as a weapon against 'Jason'. 

"How don't I?" 

"How do you?"

"Just- I've known you for years, how wouldn't I know?"

The 'Jason' frowned again and moved from the window to close the door and Tim's eyes shot to the window and he almost scowled, it was locked and while he could open it, he wouldn't be quick enough to open it and escape before the other would be able to catch him. **  
**

And again, just before Tim could reply the other interrupted him. It was beginning to really annoy him but he would listen to whatever he had to say, even if he wasn't happy about this situation. He felt way too light headed to properly defend himself and this Jason had skills close to his Jason - or he was his Jason, that was possible as well - than he wasn't going to get out of this without adding injuries to himself, and he wouldn't really be happy if that happened. 

"Never mind, I'll found out what you mean anyway." Jason responded as he walked closer and Tim felt himself get even more light in his chest and head as he approached him and he had to squint his eyes to be able to see him. 

"W-" 

"You'll forget for now, good night." 

Tim fell back into his pillows and tried to sit up again, to defend him but he was too tired, felt too light to even do anything so he just watched Jason close in at him with wide eyes, a tingling of panic filling him because he shouldn't forget this, he had to figure out what had happened, who this was and what had happened on the docks. 

His eyelids began to grow heavy when a hand was pressed against his cheek and his breath began to slow down, the last thing he heard was that weird language from before again and then he was plugged into darkness again. 


End file.
